President Donald Trump said Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman “totally denied any knowledge” of what happened when Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi went missing this month after visiting the consulate in Istanbul.

“Just spoke with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia who totally denied any knowledge of what took place in their Turkish Consulate,” Trump tweeted. “He was with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo …during the call, and told me that he has already started, and will rapidly expand, a full and complete investigation into this matter.”

Pompeo met with Saudi Arabian King Salman and the crown prince in Riyadh on Tuesday.

“Answers will be forthcoming shortly,” Trump said.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Trump compared the situation to the allegations of sexual assault leveled against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearing.

"I think we have to find out what happened first," he said. "Here we go again with, you know, you're guilty until proven innocent. I don't like that. We just went through that with Justice Kavanaugh and he was innocent all the way as far as I'm concerned."

U.S. resident and Washington Post contributor Khashoggi vanished two weeks ago while visiting the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Turkish officials said they have evidence Khashoggi was killed and dismembered inside the diplomatic compound, but Saudi officials called the allegations "baseless."

Pompeo will fly to Ankara on Wednesday to meet with Turkish officials on the case, said Heather Nauert, the State Department's chief spokeswoman.

Pompeo characterized his meetings with Saudi officials Tuesday as "direct and candid conversations."

"During each of today’s meetings, the Saudi leadership strongly denied any knowledge of what took place in their consulate in Istanbul," Pompeo said. "My assessment from these meetings is that there is serious commitment to determine all the facts and ensure accountability, including accountability for Saudi Arabia’s senior leaders or senior officials."

Pompeo did not address reports from CNN and The New York Times suggesting the Saudi government would soon release a report that Khashoggi was accidentally killed as a result of a planned rendition back to Saudi Arabia. A spokesman for the Saudi Embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment on those reports.

"The government of Saudi Arabia owes the Khashoggi family and the world a full and honest explanation of everything that happened to him," Fred Ryan, publisher and CEO of The Washington Post, said in a statement Tuesday. "The Saudi government can no longer remain silent, and it is essential that our own government and others push harder for the truth."

Ryan supported the Khashoggi's family request for an independent, international investigation.

Turkish police searched the Saudi consulate in Istanbul overnight Monday and announced Tuesday that the Saudi consul’s home in Istanbul would be searched. A Turkish official told the Associated Press that the embassy search revealed information indicating that Khashoggi was killed there.

In Riyadh, Pompeo held short meetings with Salman and Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir before sitting down with the crown prince, Saudi's de facto ruler, inside the royal court.

“We are strong and old allies," the prince said after greeting Pompeo, according to a pool report from journalists traveling with the secretary of state. "We face our challenges together – the past, the day of, tomorrow.”

Nauert said that during Pompeo's meeting with the king, the secretary of state thanked Salman for "his commitment to supporting a thorough, transparent and timely investigation of Jamal Khashoggi’s disappearance."

A number of powerful U.S. executives said they pulled out of an investment summit in Riyadh later this month because of the case. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin plans to attend the conference.

In Congress, lawmakers in both parties expressed concern about the Saudi government's alleged involvement in Khashoggi's disappearance. Some suggested U.S. arms sales to the regime should be halted if it's determined the journalist was killed inside the consulate.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said the United States should "sanction the hell out of Saudi Arabia" and slammed the crown prince, known by his initials MBS, as a "toxic" figure.

Pompeo was dispatched to Saudi Arabia by Trump, who warned of "severe punishment" for the kingdom if it was involved in Khashoggi’s disappearance. Trump said Monday that the alleged slaying could have been carried out by "rogue killers."

Not only is Saudi Arabia a dominant player in global oil markets, it is also a major buyer of U.S. arms and plays a key role in Washington's Middle East foreign policy, aiding anti-terrorism efforts and acting as a reliable bulwark against Iran.

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Turkish police stand guard as they cordoned off an underground car park, Oct. 22, 2018, in Istanbul, after they found an abandoned car belonging to the Saudi consulate, three weeks after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate. OZAN KOSE, AFP/Getty Images

Turkish forensics arrive at an underground car park cordoned off by Turkish police, Oct. 22, 2018 in Istanbul, after they found an abandoned car belonging to the Saudi consulate, three weeks after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate. OZAN KOSE, AFP/Getty Images

Security personnel guard Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul, Monday, Oct. 22, 2018. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called the son of Jamal Khashoggi, the kingdom announced early Monday, to express condolences for the death of the journalist killed at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul by officials that allegedly included a member of the royal's entourage. Lefteris Pitarakis, AP

Turkish forensics leave an underground car park cordoned off by Turkish police, Oct. 22, 2018, in Istanbul, after police found an abandoned car belonging to the Saudi consulate, three weeks after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate. OZAN KOSE, AFP/Getty Images

In this image made from a March 2018 video provided by Metafora Production, Jamal Khashoggi reacts as a cat jumped on his lap, while speaking in an interview at an undisclosed location. Eighteen days after Khashoggi disappeared, Saudi Arabia acknowledged early Saturday, Oct. 20, 2018, that the 59-year-old writer has died in what it said was a "fistfight" inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Metafora Production via AP

A security guard walks outside Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul, Saturday, Oct. 20, 2018. Saudi Arabia claims Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi died in a "fistfight" in consulate, finally admitting that the writer had been slain at its diplomatic post. The overnight announcement in Saudi state media came more than two weeks after Khashoggi, 59, entered the building for paperwork required to marry his Turkish fiancée, and never came out. Lefteris Pitarakis, AP

A woman stands next to police barriers, in front of the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, on Oct. 20, 2018. Saudi Arabia admitted on October 20, 2018 that critic Jamal Khashoggi was killed inside its Istanbul consulate, saying he died during a "brawl", as Turkey vowed to release the full findings of its own investigation. Yasin Akgul, AFP/Getty Images

Sherine Tadros, head of New York (UN) Office of Amnesty International, speaks during a news conference at the United Nations, Oct. 18, 2018. Members from Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, The Committee to Protect Journalists and Reporters Without Borders make an appeal regarding the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. TIMOTHY A. CLARY, AFP/Getty Images

Turkish forensic officers leave the Saudi consulate after they conducted a new search over the disappearance and alleged slaying of writer Jamal Khashoggi, in Istanbul, early Thursday, Oct. 18, 2018. Emrah Gurel, AP

Turkish forensic officers arrive at the Saudi consulate to conduct a new search over the disappearance and alleged slaying of writer Jamal Khashoggi, in Istanbul, early Thursday, Oct. 18, 2018. Pro-government newspaper Yeni Safak on Wednesday said it had obtained audio recordings of the alleged killing of Saudi writer Khashoggi inside the consulate on Oct. 2. Emrah Gurel, AP

A Turkish police officer walks inside the property of the residence of the Saudi consul General Mohammed al-Otaibi as Turkish police conduct a search after the disappearance and alleged slaying of writer Jamal Khashoggi, in Istanbul, Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2018. Emrah Gurel, AP

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo shakes hands with the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday Oct. 16, 2018. Pompeo also met on Tuesday with Saudi King Salman over the disappearance and alleged slaying of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi, who vanished two weeks ago during a visit to the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. Leah Mills, Pool photo by Leah Millis

A security member is seen inside the entrance of the Saudi Arabia's Consulate in Istanbul, Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2018. A Turkish forensics teams finished a search for evidence inside the Saudi Arabia Consulate in Istanbul early Tuesday morning, over the disappearance and alleged slaying of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi. Petros Giannakouris, AP

Two trucks are loaded with evidence from Turkish forensic police officers as they take part in the investigation of the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, Oct. 16, 2018. TOLGA BOZOGLU, EPA-EFE

Tawakkol Karman, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate for 2011, gestures as she talks to members of the media about the disappearance of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi, near the Saudi Arabia consulate in Istanbul, Monday, Oct. 8, 2018. Lefteris Pitarakis, AP

A security guard walks in the Saudi Arabia consulate in Istanbul, Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2018. Veteran Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared Oct. 2, 2018, while on a visit to the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, sparking an international uproar involving the kingdom, Turkey and the United States that remains unresolved. Lefteris Pitarakis, AP

This image taken from CCTV video obtained by the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet and made available on Oct. 9, 2018, claims to show Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2018. CCTV via AP

A bird flies next to Saudi Arabia's flag at the roof top of their consulate building in Istanbul, Sunday, Oct. 14, 2018. Veteran Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared over a week ago while on a visit to the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, sparking an international uproar involving the kingdom, Turkey and the United States that remains unresolved. Petros Giannakouris, AP